Monday, October 05, 2015
Car microclimates
Most of the time I walk and bus within a highly restricted area. Four or five times per year I leave the area to head downtown to a bank, or across town to the doctor. Today was an annual doctor visit ... (All OK. Yay.) ... and for some reason I was noticing cars along the way.
Cars within my neighborhood 'trend old' as they say. Peak is probably around 1990, with a fair number of '60s and '70s cars still on the road, and relatively few of the newest styles.
The crosstown bus makes a lengthy stop in Five Mile shopping center, which is about two miles from my neighborhood. By the standards of a car driver, Five Mile and my area are indistinguishable. For an observant pedestrian they're separate universes. Like a short Tardis hop to a new decade. All the cars look new, most are the latest weird-looking styles. Nothing familiar.
On the way back I noticed the shift of mean age as the bus came down the hill.
After I jumped off, the FIRST CAR I saw and heard was an original '52 Chevy, whining through its three mighty gears, all the way up to a scary 35 MPH!
Neighborhood's way of saying Welcome home!
Sidenote: Why did Detroit take so long to provide 4-speeds for small engines? Smaller engine needs a wider range of ratios to provide safe and economical performance. This was never a mystery; well understood from the start of internal combustion. Starting in the '30s and then resuming in the late '50s, Detroit offered 4-speed trannies on the biggest 8s, which hardly need more than two gears. They only made the proper connection after Toyota forced the issue by grabbing half the market.
Labels: Heimatkunde, TMI
¶ 5:32 PM
